AOL UnUOctober 23, 2012
INTRO TO LEAN
Danny BoiceCo-Founder & CTO, Speek / Resident, AOL Fishbowl LabsTwitter: @[email protected]
Adam BerkDirector, Lean Startup Machine Twitter: @AdamBerk [email protected]
Eliminate WasteBootstrapping
Product/Market Fit
Pivot
Iterate
Agile Development
Problem/Solution Fit
Customer Development??
??
?
?
UX Design
WHAT IS LEAN?
A set of processes used by entrepreneurs to develop products and markets, combining Agile Software Development, Customer Development and existing software platforms (usually FOSS).en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lean_Startup
Lean = What to buildAgile = How to build
What is a “pivot”?
A structured course correction designed to test a fundamental new hypothesis about the product.Build -> Measure -> Learn -> Pivot or Repeat
What is a “Minimum Viable Product (MVP)”?
An MVP is the smallest thing you can build in order to start measuring and learning.“If you aren't ashamed of your product, you shipped too late”- Reid Hoffman
WHY SHOULD I CARE?
Something is fundamentally
wrong
Why do products fail?
Big Idea #1
The vast majority of products fail NOT because it couldn’t be built...
but because nobody wanted the product.
Steve Blank
“No business plan survives
first contact with customers.”
- Steve Blank
Why do products succeed?
Big Idea #2
“The vast majority of [successful] startups
abandoned their initial plans
and learned what would and would not work in the market.”
-Clayton Christensen, The Innovator’s Dilemma
PIVOT!!!
FAILUREThe Secret to Success
OMG!!!
Curious...
LEAN = PROCESS
NOT Black & White
LEAN’s Mission:Entrepreneurship & Product is a Management Science
that can be Learned
YOUR Mission:Don’t Waste Time Building
Something Before Learning Whether People Actually Want it
Get Out of the Building
TALK TO PEOPLE
Customer Development
Who Are They?
Customer Hypothesis&
Problem Hypothesis
GOOBing is HARD
•Uncovers how users think and behave
•Validates assumptions/removes bias
•Shows difference between intent and reality
•Provides direction and data instead of opinion or speculation
•Provides the ability to inform design
What’s the point?
It is NOT
•Surveys
•Focus Groups
•Your Head
•Friends & Family
Go in with 2 to 3 objectives and have a real conversation. Brant Cooper
Know your goals and questions. Giff ConstableUse a script. Ash Maurya
3-POINT INTERVIEW
1. Has [insert specific problem]
been a problem for you?
(context)
2. Tell me about the last time you
dealt with this problem? (story)
3. What’s your ideal solution for
this? (solution)
No Selling Allowed
Talking to Customers
What is the Problem?
•Who, What, When, Where, Why, How
•Avoid Would & Future Tense
•The more you ask someone to imagine something, the less you can trust their data
•People SAY and DO completely different things.
Find Early Adopters
“FOAMING AT THE
MOUTH”1. Have the problem
2. Know they have the problem
3. Searched for a solution
4. Hacked their own solution
5. Have budget for a solution
LEAN is ComplexBe Skeptical of Simple
Solutions
3-POINT INTERVIEW
1. Has [insert specific problem]
been a problem for you?
(context)
2. Tell me about the last time you
dealt with this problem? (story)
3. What’s your ideal solution for
this? (solution)
PROCESS
Use the Validation
Board
Use the Manual
Use One Another
OBJECTIVE:Learn
MVP Method
1.Problem Exploration: Exists? Who?2.Product Pitch: Collect currency3.Concierge: Deliver customer
experience
Stages increase in opportunity cost
3 Stages...
Minimum Success Criterion
Make a Prediction:
If we [do this], [numeric] of target customers
will [behavior]
Validation Board
• It’s a valuable communication tool• 5-7 words in black sharpie• WRITE IN ALL CAPS• Mentors will enforce strongly
Following guidelines = better experience
Validation BoardDemo
http://bit.ly/lsm-canvasvideo
Read the fine print on the Canvas
Get Out of the Building
TALK TO PEOPLE
Intensive 3-Day Workshops200 Workshops Globally in 2013
Top Related